


The Importance of Words

by Oakwyrm



Category: In the Flesh (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Post-Season/Series 02, Simon is confused, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, like really confused
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-01
Updated: 2014-12-01
Packaged: 2018-02-27 16:57:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2700410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oakwyrm/pseuds/Oakwyrm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>WARNING: Contains MAJOR spoiler for season 2 episode 6, if you have not seen season 2, DO NOT read.</p><p>Simon had never quite been able to figure out the words written on his wrist. They were just too weird.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Importance of Words

 

Simon Monroe, since he had first learned how to read had been staring at the words on his wrist more than was strictly speaking “usual”, picking at them sometimes and covering them up most of the time because they were just so _weird._

Other people had weird words too, he knew some girls that had burst out crying because their words were so in line with catcalls. But no one, no one else had _these_ kinds of words. They were a whole different level of weird. I mean, come on “Excuse me, you’re… uh… you’re sitting on my grave,”? What the hell was that supposed to mean? How on _earth_ could those be the first words his soulmate was ever going to speak to him?

He’d spent countless hours searching the net for _any_ play that had those particular words, any book, because really, that was the only sensible explanation. These words had to be from a work of fiction. He found nothing, well, nothing with that exact wording anyway. Maybe and interpretation?

That had to be it, he decided, because his life made no sense any other way. So he contented himself for a while.

For a while, but it just didn’t feel right. He felt like those words were _true._ They actually belonged to his mysterious soulmate and no other. And it was a mildly terrifying thought. What kind of soulmate has a grave?

A ghost? A vampire? Hell, a zombie even?

He had always shaken his head at these thoughts, chased them away. Such things didn’t exist.

In place his brain came up with one last ditch effort to explain the mysterious words. It was a nightmare, really, that showed him what he then thought for the longest time must be true.

_He was walking though a graveyard, for what reason he couldn’t be sure, but he was so, so tired. He just needed to rest. Just for a bit._

_He sighed and sat down on a tombstone, not really looking at the name or the dates or anything. Suddenly a recorded voice rang out and he jumped, removing himself from the tombstone to find a small weight-activated microphone._

_"Excuse me, you’re… uh… you’re sitting on my grave," Simon froze and crouched next to the tombstone, staring at it. He reached out, tracing the name (which he never could remember afterwards, if he'd even seen it clearly), looking at the dates, trying to learn and_ hurting. _Oh God it hurt, sitting by the tombstone of the person who was supposed to be the love of his life. He never even got a chance to meet this person. See them, touch them, get to know them._

Simon had woken with a start and found he was crying. Because really, what other explanation was there? His soulmate had to be dead, or would be by the time Simon found them. Some eccentric who thought it would be a good idea to place a recording by their grave, maybe to scare away disrespectful kids.

Then came the Rising and suddenly everything made perfect sense. Simon worried, he worried endlessly. What would his soulmate be like? What would they think of him? How did they view the ULA? How would they take all of Simon’s emotional baggage?

That was what worried Simon most because in his mind his soulmate was slowly starting to take shape. A kind, gentle soul who would be endlessly tormented by anything he could remember from the Rising. Who would stand up for his undead comrades but not wish to harm the living. Yes, his soulmate had even taken a gender in Simon’s mind and he couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that “he” was the _right_ pronoun to use.

He had started spending a lot of time in graveyards, but any occupant of the grave he was too near, or standing on, or anything like that, would almost always tell him how disrespectful he was being, usually in harsh words. Nothing like the polite and, Simon imagined, slightly incredulous tone of the writing on his wrist.

Then he went to Roarton. Just another job, he thought. Find the First Risen. It probably wouldn’t be easy, but he’d manage to do it… somehow… Visiting the graveyards had become so routine by now he didn’t even realize he was doing it until a voice rang out from behind him.

"Excuse me, you’re… uh… you’re sitting on my grave," Simon turned, completely forgetting the words written on his wrist as the reply rolled of this tongue.

"This you? I’m sorry, didn’t realize you were one of us. All that… on your face," the boy looked a little offended and Simon crouched by the gravestone, taking in the name _Kieren Walker_. Nice name.

"Gone is the face we loved so dear, silent the voice we loved to hear," he read aloud before nod-shrugging. "It rhymes," he commented.

"Yeah, I didn’t chose it," Kieren said. Simon rose, curious to find out more about this boy.

"What would you have chosen?" he wondered.

"Maybe a poem or something?" Kieren said. Simon gave a thoughtful "hm" before resisting what he would have liked on his gravestone. Kieren looked like he was about to say something when Amy showed up.

Simon didn’t resent her the interruption but he was curious. He had heard about unrequited soulmates, of course, but he hoped, he really hoped, that Kieren would truly be his soulmate. Even though they had their first disagreement almost instantly.

————————-

It was a long time before the subject ever arose, well, it felt like a long time anyway. It was after Amy’s funeral, in fact. They went up to Kieren’s room together and, despite being in a relationship already, the subject of soulmates had yet to come up.

Simon thought it was time to talk about it, if only to get some form of closure. He could accept it if he wasn’t Kieren’s _true_ soulamte. The First Risen had chosen _him_ , after all, and he hoped they’d stay that way for as long as time allowed.

Before he could speak, however, Kieren turned to him, a slightly worried expression on his face.

"There’s… something I need to show you," he said. "Just, stand there and be quiet, okay?" Simon nodded, a little confused, as Kieren sat down and peeled off his sock, drawing up his pants leg a bit.

There, on his ankle, were the words “This you?” written in a fine flowing script. Simon let a breath escape him, relieved beyond belief and drew up his sleeve on the wrist he _hadn’t_ shown Kieren.

Kieren stared at the words for a while before laughing. Simon frowned at him, completely confused but Kieren just continued laughing as he got up and made his way over to the Irish ex-disciple.

He hooked his arms around Simon’s neck and drew his boyfriend in for a kiss, which Simon was only too happy to reciprocate, if still a little confused at Kieren’s reaction. When they parted Kieren looked a little more serious.

"I’m sorry, Simon, but… Have you really had those words on your wrist your whole life?" he asked. Simon looked at him and nodded. Kieren leaned his head against Simon’s chest and sighed. "So how confusing was that?"

Now it was Simon’s turn to laugh, a small, surprising sound, but a laugh still.

"You have no idea," he muttered.

————————-

Kieren had always been a little confused about his words. They _seemed_ normal enough but they weren’t quite _right._ Words like “Oh, sorry” or “Thanks so much” were rather common. “This yours?” was also extremely usual. His words were like that, but not really. “This you?” was written neatly on his ankle in a flowing script and he could never quite figure out _why._

Why would the first words his soulmate spoke to him be “this you”? It was close to normal but still not.

Imagine his surprise when and Irish PDS sitting on his grave suddenly gave clarity to everything.

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally just going to be an "imagine this" thing on tumblr but somehow it turned into this...
> 
> Well, hope you liked it anyway.


End file.
